“Sir?“ a colonel shouted over the large bridge of the Ralroost. Admiral Kre’fey turned around from the windows
and looked at the officer, who came running up to him.
“Yes?”
“Someone has sabotaged our laser batteries. We can’t fire. If the Yuuzhan Vong attack now, we would be helpless
except for our fighters.”
The Admiral knew he had to act fast to avoid such a fate. After a few seconds, he had made a decision.
“Send security officers to every important organ on this ship and set course for Coruscant. The ship will be repaired
there and will load new supplies.”

But we have to find the saboteur before we reach the capital.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deep inside the ship’s belly, the lieutenant who had been so astonished about Jaina’s behaviour opened a locker
in his small room and pulled a blanket out. Inside of it was a villip, the communicator of a Yuuzhan Vong.
But before he activated the villip by stroking it’s head, the officer touched a point near his nose and his ooglith
mask, which made him appear human, peeled away from him and revealed his true nature.

He was quite small for a Vong, but his wide shoulders and the big chest cavity indicated he was a strong warrior, the scars
which covered his whole body showed his high rank.

The Yuuzhan Vong grimaced.
In his opinion, pretending to be an infidel sucked. He waited impatiently for the day he could stop pretending to be one of
them, when he could finally kill all these stupid infidels and their machines, even he had to use from time to time.

That day will be soon. He promised himself.

He reached out with his hand to stroke the villip’s head, who turned immediately to the face of Nom Anor.

“Executor.” The vong bowed.
“Ean Ku, do you have news?”
“Yes, my master. The ship has set course for Coruscant, as planned.”
“Very good.” Nom Anor smiled. “And more?”
“Some of the Jeedai on this ship are doing a special training.”
“What kind of training?” Nom Anor asked suspicious.
“I couldn’t figure it out, the infidels refuse to let anyone except their kind enter the training room, but there
are rumors it is a kind of self-defense. It seems that this Jeedai master Luke Skywalker’s wife prepares them
for combat with us.”
“Mara Jade-Skywalker? That’s impossible, she should already be dead by now?” Now Anor exclaimed in shock.
“No, she’s still alive. I’ve heard she even expects a child from her husband.”
The executor’s eyes grew wide.
“We can’t allow this. A child of them could became a too powerful enemy, maybe even more powerful than it’s
parents and it’s cousins, the Solo children.”
“The Solo’s are also here.”
“All of them?” Nom Anor wanted to know.
“Yes, and two of the children are in that training.”
“Which ones?”
“They are called Jacen and Jaina. They are the oldest children.”

Nom Anor frowned. This wasn’t good, they had to change their plans.

“Is that all?”
“I’m afraid it isn’t, master. There is something different with the girl, Jaina. She acts strange.”

Nom Anor rolled his eyes, a gesture which made him in Ean Ku’s eyes much too similar to the infidels.

Ean Ku allowed himself a small smirk.
“Of course you’re right, master. You must know it, you’ve more experience with the infidels as I. But can
you please tell me, when does a Jeedai hum and smile while going down an empty corridor?”

Nom Anor stared at Ean as if he had mutated to a Mon Calamari.
“You’ll find out whatever it is.
Kill Mara Jade and follow our plan.”

Ean Ku bowed again as the villip turned to a ball and the executor’s face vanished.
He smiled absently.

The day had come.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jaina found Tenel Ka in one of the lounges of the ship, looking through a window at the stars.
“So here you are! I’ve been looking for you.
Will you come to Aunt Mara’s training today?”

Tenel Ka didn’t turn around to face her friend, she just continued to stare at the stars.
“I come to every lesson.” The young princess of the Hapes cluster replied.

Jaina hesitated. As one of her closest friends, she knew Tenel Ka very well, but although she spoke rarely, it had never been
that short spoken.

“Can I train with you then? Only if Aunt Mara permits it, of course.” Jaina asked nervous.
She felt strange, speaking at her friends back.

“You may.”
“Good.” Jaina nodded.
She felt she needed to become stronger and the dathomirian warrior was a good partner for training, although she only had
one arm. She had lost her left in a lightsaber training with Jaina’s twin Jacen.

You just want to become stronger to impress Kyp. A dark voice whispered in her head. She ignored it and waited.

After what seemed like an eternity, Tenel Ka finally sighed and asked quietly: “Who is it?”
“Kyp.” Jaina just said.
Tenel Ka nodded. She had expected something like that.

Jaina swallowed with a knot in her throat.
In her friends eyes, she could see all the held back emotions all young Jedi had to deal with during the long weeks of war.
All that anger, hate, despair, confusion, sorrow and pain she also kept locked deep inside her heart.
In a single moment, both women looked into each others heart and found the same things there. A not-yet-answered love and
the desperation of never getting this answer was laying over everything.

Suddenly Jaina felt a deep solidarity with Tenel Ka, one she had never experienced before. She felt that they were alike.

Jaina closed the last bit of distance between them with a few steps and laid one arm around Tenel Ka.
They looked at the endless stars, holding onto their union for a while and keeping the memory of this moment in their hearts.